E-Village: India Travelers Community

The Tourism Department of Uttar Pradesh, a north Indian state, is planning to link three of the most traveled cities in the region via land and air to bolster tourism potential across the state.

By linking the cities of Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi by building new road- and railways and extending air services, the local government believes the number of tourists traveling between the three destinations will increase dramatically.

The Agra Fort is just one of the many destinations the new heritage arc would benefit.

If the plan comes to fruition, it will be the first time the cities of Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi will be linked by air. To encourage the development and retention of these new air routes, the local government is expect to cut the fuel tax on domestic flights in the region by more than 16 percent to encourage Indian airlines to start servicing the new routes.

The Indian government announced in late November that travelers from 43 countries could apply for their tourist visas to India online and receive travel authorization via email, a move that has already greatly reduced the amount of time and effort required to travel to India. After arriving in India, travelers who have completed the online process and received acceptance will have their passports stamped with a 30-day Indian tourist visa at an immigration counter.

Before the new service rolled out on November 27, potential travelers to India faced a lengthy visa acquisition process that required either visits to an Indian consulate or subcontracting the processing through a visa acquisition service.

Humayun's Tomb is one of the three World Heritage Sites in Delhi protected by UNESCO.

New tourist visa on arrival services and facilities are expected to increases tourist numbers in India.

Officials with the Indian government believe the new services and corresponding facilities will greatly increase the number of travelers visiting India, which sees only a fraction of the tourist footfalls of other Asian destinations like Thailand.

“[This new process] is a dream come true for the Indian tourism industry, and [is] bound to impact [India’s] economy,” said Mahesh Sharma, India’s Minister of State tourism and Culture.

The Spice Village is a boutique luxury property owned by the CGH Group located in the heart of the Periyar National Park. The entire resort is a recreation of a mountain tribal village, albeit with modern comforts to suit the tastes of the independent luxury traveler.

The CGH Spice Village - Back to nature without compromising comfort

The focus of the Spice Village is providing a luxurious experience in an eco-friendly setting. The property curls around a misty ridge 2,000 feet above sea level, and at first glance seems to rise out of the forest itself. The idea is to provide the comforts of a modern hotel in a setting that does not intrude on the natural experience.

The entire resort has been built on the site of a former home of a British forest ranger. The property is full of verdant greenery, fruit trees, flowering plants and rare herbs.

The small town of Pushkar in Rajasthan is a two and a half hour drive (130 km) from the state capital Jaipur. Pushkar is the venue for the world renowned Pushkar Camel Fair and the town is located on the banks of an eponymous holy lake.

The actual dates of the Pushkar Camel Festival vary every year as they coincide with the lunar calendar, and the festival always ends on the night of a full moon. This year the festival dates are scheduled at the end of October running through November.

As the time of the festival approaches, the sleepy little town comes alive as elaborate preparations begin for the Pushkar Fair. These activities result in the many unique events, spectacles and sights that one can experience during the fair. These include a number of ethnic cultural events such as the colorful and vibrant Rajasthani dance performances, as well as traditional sporting events to coincide with the fair. During the fair, villagers bring over 100,000 heads of cattle (about half of which are camels) to trade and sell.

Apart from its commercial aspects, the festivities are also buoyed by a plethora of activities such as horse shows, camel races, camel and cow beauty contests, acrobatics, camel safaris and much more.

Apart from being a city of 400 temples, Pushkar prides itself on being the site of the only Brahma temple dedicated solely to the worship of the Hindu God of Creation.

“Two cubs … [were] spotted Thursday evening through camera traps,” a field director with the reserve recently told the media.

Sariska Tiger Reserve’s tiger population is up to 13 after two new cubs were spotted this summer.

Officials with the tiger reserve said that the cubs appear to be four- to five-months-old and healthy. The two cubs represent only the second set of new tiger births in the Sariska reserve since adult tigers were moved here from the nearby Ranthambore Tiger Reserve in 2008.

Poaching inside the reserve decimated the tiger population in the early 2000s. A population survey between 2005 and 2006 found no trace of tigers in the reserve, and officials arranged to have 7 breeding-age adults moved to the park from the Ranthambore Tiger Reserve while increasing park security to protect against illegal hunting and trapping.

The two new cubs bring the total population of tigers inside the Sariska reserve to 13.